NEST Mandate
The overall goal of NEST is to use advanced data creation, management, and analytic techniques to conduct theoretically driven and evidenced-based research that will inform social and economic policy and practices in Canada and North America more broadly.
In the list of objectives:
- Facilitate and promote world-class, cross-disciplinary research and training relevant to social and economic policy and practice that address pressing issues facing modern societies;
- Bring together researchers from all Western Research Centres housed in the Faculty of Social Science for collaborative research, and to share resources for the benefit of all;
- Train the next generation of leaders for the academic world, for local, national and international government, and for the private and non-profit sectors;
- Profile policy-and practice-relevant social science research being conducted at Western by disseminating our findings widely to policy-makers, practitioners, researchers, businesses and the general public;
- Forge new, and strengthen established, links with the community, policy-makers, and practitioners for the purpose of supporting evidence-based decision-making;
- Provide a home for international visitors conducting relevant research;
- Mentor junior faculty working in policy-and practice-related areas and improve their ability to successfully apply for grants and contracts, and disseminate their research findings; and,
- Facilitate applications for external grants and contracts that improve funding outcomes.
